Rodi Garganico names a square after Giovanni Panunzio: "A Thousand Days on the Side of the State"

Piazzale Irium in Lido del Sole , Rodi Garganico , will be named after Giovanni Panunzio , the man who dared to say no to the mafia in Foggia. The ceremony will be held on Sunday, August 10, 2025, at 9:30 p.m. , in the presence of civil and religious authorities, citizens, and the entrepreneur's family. The announcement was made by the Giovanni Panunzio Association – Equality, Legality, Rights , which promoted the initiative together with the Municipality of Rodi Garganico , the ATAS Association , and the Pro Loco of Lido del Sole .

A Thousand Days Against the Extortion

Giovanni Panunzio was much more than an entrepreneur : he was a symbol of civil resistance , a citizen who chose the state even when it meant risking everything. For a thousand days he refused mafia blackmail and never bowed to the logic of extortion. A choice he paid with his life: on November 6, 1992, he was murdered outside his home in Foggia.

His sacrifice was not in vain. It was thanks to his denunciation that the Panunzio Maxi Trial was brought, the first historic ruling officially recognizing the existence of the Foggia mafia. This trial marked a turning point in the fight against organized crime in Capitanata.

The weight of memory, the value of commitment

"Naming a square after Giovanni Panunzio is not just a symbolic act ," the Association explains, "but a pact with history , a reminder to never remain indifferent ." Today, his moral legacy lives on through those who preserve his memory and transform it into concrete commitment.

At the forefront are his family, starting with his son Michele Panunzio and daughter-in-law Giovanna Belluna Panunzio , whose dedication has been instrumental in keeping her father-in-law's memory alive. Also with them are Dimitri Cavallaro Lioi , president of the Association, and secretary Antonio Belluna . A resilient community that has transformed grief into public testimony.

Legality, courage, participation

The Rodi Garganico event will be a moment of profound civic remembrance . An opportunity to reflect on the importance of legality and the value of active participation . "Legality is also honored in this way," the organizers emphasize, " with the courage of memory and the strength of presence ."

The ceremony will also be a message for the new generations: an invitation to never look the other way , to build every day a society founded on respect for the rules, on dignity and on the rejection of mafia compromise.

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